Tell me about rural homeschooling and living?

[Oakblossoms]

We are moving to the country. No YMCA. No Costco for at least 2 hours. Lots of snow. No Family. Huge adjustment.

 

Any thoughts or maybe just a whole lot of prayers and positive energy thrown my way please.

[Liz CA]

Here is my collective wisdom accumulated by years of country living. :)

 

1. You need chickens because if you forget other vitally important things at the store which is an hour or so away, at least you will have good, healthy protein all the time!

 

2. Shop in bulk and get a freezer if you don't have one. Freeze and can like a madwoman. :) Enlist children's help and write it down as home economics...

 

3. Get a generator of good quality and capacity. When the power is gone because heavy snow lies on the lines and you cannot get out the driveway, you will be able to operate the coffeemaker with the help of a generator and nothing else will really matter...well, a gravity fed water storage tank is nice too so you won't run out of water right away assuming you will be on a well in the country.

 

4. Have a nice assortment of games and books on hand. You will need tea and the makings of scrumptious desserts (ingredient list up to you) because winter evenings in the middle of nowhere call for sweets!

 

5. Make sure your cell phones work in a remote area.

 

6. Grow your own food. Every child picks a veggie for which he/she is responsible and has to cultivate an area in the garden and make sure it gets watered, cared for and harvested properly. This could be Botany Lab on your transcripts. :)

 

7. If you do not know yet how to bake bread, learn it now! It is easy, rewarding and together with the delicious eggs from your chickens, you will always have food, no matter what.

 

8. Make sure UPS delivers "out there". If not, plan for a drop off address with a friend or relative who lives within the confines of civilization.

 

9. Make friends with any neighbors - even if they are miles away. One day, you will need someone for something and you will be glad to be able to call a friend instead of a stranger.

 

:laugh: PS: You will also need a large dog. I favor the mastiff variety. They protect their family with their lives and love kids but there are a lot of other very lovable breeds as well.

[Oakblossoms]

Oh priorities are still the same!

[Liz CA]

Yes, the librarian! We didn't have a library nearby but the bookmobile came year round weather permitting.

[Amanda's Mommy]

Here is my collective wisdom accumulated by years of country living. :)

 

1. You need chickens because if you forget other vitally important things at the store which is an hour or so away, at least you will have good, healthy protein all the time!

 

2. Shop in bulk and get a freezer if you don't have one. Freeze and can like a madwoman. :) Enlist children's help and write it down as home economics...

 

3. Get a generator of good quality and capacity. When the power is gone because heavy snow lies on the lines and you cannot get out the driveway, you will be able to operate the coffeemaker with the help of a generator and nothing else will really matter...well, a gravity fed water storage tank is nice too so you won't run out of water right away assuming you will be on a well in the country.

 

4. Have a nice assortment of games and books on hand. You will need tea and the makings of scrumptious desserts (ingredient list up to you) because winter evenings in the middle of nowhere call for sweets!

 

5. Make sure your cell phones work in a remote area.

 

6. Grow your own food. Every child picks a veggie for which he/she is responsible and has to cultivate an area in the garden and make sure it gets watered, cared for and harvested properly. This could be Botany Lab on your transcripts. :)

 

7. If you do not know yet how to bake bread, learn it now! It is easy, rewarding and together with the delicious eggs from your chickens, you will always have food, no matter what.

 

8. Make sure UPS delivers "out there". If not, plan for a drop off address with a friend or relative who lives within the confines of civilization.

 

9. Make friends with any neighbors - even if they are miles away. One day, you will need someone for something and you will be glad to be able to call a friend instead of a stranger.

 

:laugh: PS: You will also need a large dog. I favor the mastiff variety. They protect their family with their lives and love kids but there are a lot of other very lovable breeds as well.

 

Gas or wood stove so you can have hot food/drinks when the power is out for hours. Also so you can melt the snow for water.

[Ottakee]

We are not as rural as that---some think were are in the "sticks" while others think we are "city" people---depending on their perspective.

 

I agree with a generator. Get a good one and keep gas in it with some extra. Then talk to an electrician about how to SAFELY have the generator run your house (so you don't back feed electricity down the line and possibly injure a worker) and what it will safely run.

 

Learn to embrace muck boots and carhartts as your "normal" wear. Good outdoor clothing for your lifestyle and weather makes a HUGE difference.

 

Keep lots of "play clothes" available and don't worry about the stains on those. The kids will have a ton of fun outside and WILL get very dirty.

 

Learn about any poisonous plants, snakes, dangerous animals, etc. in your area. A good dog is great as well.

 

Depending on how far out you are from medical help/emergency clinic/hospital, etc. keep a good first aid or advanced first aid kit and know how to use it.

 

How far away will you be from basic services---gas station, basic grocery store, library, medical care, etc? That will all make a big difference.

 

Have FUN and embrace this adventure. Sign the kids up for 4H or other local groups.

[Oakblossoms]

He is looking at 4 houses and they are all in small towns. Three are in towns with services. So, it will be a town. But, nothing like we are used to. The closet city will be Billings, MT. I am really pushing for a particular town which coincidently my dh father reccommeded without me knowing it. It won't be farm living.

[Punks in Ontario]

My only advice would be to realize early that these people are your friends and social contacts. Make sure to be friendly; if they're friendly back it's a bonus. Really, small towns are very socially limited. There are not other groups so you need to decide to grow where you're planted. And enjoy. Even though I live in the country, small town life can be great.

[Zoo Keeper]

When we were more rural, our power outages were more frequent (and took longer to get fixed). We did not have a generator. Soooo, I could not depend on school material that required electricity--video courses, anything with the computer, etc.

 

Books. Lots and lots of books. A good ol' turn-the-crank-and-hear-it-eat-up-your-pencil sharpener. Whiteboard and markers. Notebooks.

 

We ruthlessly cut out activities and outside classes for school; it really had to be worth the travel time and gas money.

 

 

And as others have posted, get used to stocking up when you go to the "big city." Grab that extra pack of TP and bottle of shampoo. And there is no running to the store for a gallon of milk.

 

 

Get a gas stove/oven for cooking, and a wood stove for heat. I miss my wood stove; you can always get warm, and warm something else up to eat.

 

Get a chest freezer, and have fun filling it. Keep a list (on a dry ease board near the freezer) of what IS in the freezer; it will help you avoid freezer-burned surprises at the bottom of the freezer.

[saraha]

If the little towns don't have restaurants, make sure to keep a stash of frozen pizzas or chicken nuggets etc for "those" days. That is what I missed the most, not having pizza delivery.

[FO4UR]

I am a transplant from suburbia to country town.

 

 

Invest in audiobooks b/c they are a great way to redeem the time spent driving to the store, to the Dr., etc...

 

 

 

The main drawback to living here is the lack of books at the library. But, I am within walking distance to my library and the librarian knows (and loves) my kids.

 

 

You don't need the YMCA when you live in the country. You do need good outerwear.

[Oakblossoms]

Yeah I think we will definitely get warmer layers, a freezer, a generator :). I am trying to steer him towards the town with the Azure stop. We lived in Alaska when I was a child and I thought it was my fun. It was a real pain for my mom to run to the store.

[Oakblossoms]

I hope we bloom where God plants us.

[Starr]

Make excursions to the big city part of your routine. A good part of the year the roads will be clear.

[Χά�ων]

I am a transplant from suburbia to country town.

 

 

Invest in audiobooks b/c they are a great way to redeem the time spent driving to the store, to the Dr., etc...

 

 

 

The main drawback to living here is the lack of books at the library. But, I am within walking distance to my library and the librarian knows (and loves) my kids.

 

 

You don't need the YMCA when you live in the country. You do need good outerwear.

 

Overdrive for a good selction of digital audiobooks. Keep your card to larger branches.

[Ecclecticmum]

I'd like to get chickens, but that would be like waving a giant red flag to the stray cats, feral foxes and poisonous/scary snakes. There is apparently already a white "we surrender" flag to those animals already. We've had to deal with 5 deadly snakes over the past summer already, plus 3 stray cats, and a billion foxes sounding like women being murdered........adding chickens would cause some sort of crazy war.

 

So be aware of your area before you add wood to the flames, so to speak.

 

Our dogs deal nicely with snakes, but if you have pets, be aware of their strengths and weaknesses (our dogs will round up the snake, stay a safe distance away, and can *really* move if they need to. They stay "near" the snake and bark, causing it to curl and stay, so we know where the snake is and can bring the dogs inside and either leave the snake to slither away (having been "warned" by our dogs) or deal with it, if its too close to our house (we live on farmland, if it gets beneath our house or is within a close boundary, we have to deal with it, as we have other animals and the kids to think of....wouldn't be nice to wake up to a snake curled in the toilet or in your bedroom because its come through gaps). If we're not home (and the neighbour has seen this numerous times over the years) the dogs corral the snake away from the house and let it leave or stay and watch the snake from a distance till we get back. I would not suggest allowing your dogs to do this, mine were trained both by me and the help of a friend who is a snake catcher and dog handler. The dogs are our "third line of defence" so to speak. The first line is the outer perimeter where we have slowly been putting up snake fencing and options to deter the snake from our yard. We have birds (forgotten what they are called, they belong to the neighbour) that wander both ours & our neighbours yard that start making an awful racket if they encounter a snake. If the snake gets past both the fencing and the birds, the dogs sense it, and come into play. Our last line of defence is our cats, whom also catch mice & insects inside the house. And that would mean the snake made it past everything and into the house. The cats are our Hail Mary line of defence, I used similar techniques to train them, but they haven't been in that situation yet.

 

Then again, we do live in Australia :p lol. Known for its funky animals that love to kill you.

 

Anyway, if you can, I would suggest planting as much as possible, trees, bushes, gardens, all filled with edible food. Just taper it around your area. My ideal garden was to use the back paddock to create quite a number of permaculture mandalas, but that needs chickens and really is meant to be its own ecosystem, which means it would be brilliant at attracting snakes, and since the snakes we get out this way are quite poisonous, it turned into a no-go. Now I'm looking into filling the back paddock with an orchard, just lots of trees, and keeping the ground clear, making a raised, neat vegetable garden next to the house, and having a herb garden hanging from the verandah. I wanted to add bushes, so with the amount of clear front yard we have, I was thinking of lining the perimeter of the yard with bushes, as a fence, and so I could have the edible bushes I am after.

 

Just remember that your ideal dream for what you want in the country may not come true, and to just figure out how to get the ideas that you want that work with the reality of what you have (my dream was lots of sunflower houses, mandalas, and log tunnels, as well as a beautiful rock garden waterfall (all of those are a no go :( but I'm slowly figuring out ways around it).

[Lily_Grace]

We lived in the middle of the ocean for 2 years. My advice:

 

-go outside. Snow, rain, whatever, make it a priority to enjoy the natural world in all its states.

 

-pare down "stuff". You don't need it, and it often brings discontent with what you have. Keep the things you love, the things that bring you together, and the things that encourage imagination.

 

-create your own holidays. You may feel a twinge of missing out on traditions you had before (city parades, etc.) so make your own. We celebrate Chocolate day and Pi day now, and do theme movie nights.

 

 

There's not a whole lot of advice there, sorry. :) But it does make it passable and even enjoyable for a family. Over the duration of our time away from the states I found that those who focused on what they lost were never happy where they were. They were just lost.

[happypamama]

We're not super rural, but we're 20-30 minutes from anything, so there is no such thing as a quick trip. Mostly, it's taught me to plan, and to be judicious with outside commitments. An hour-long event becomes a two-hour event, and even a couple of errands rapidly eats up a large portion of the day. Weeks when we have to be out of the house several times leave us feeling exhausted (and we still have the usual laundry and dishes and cleaning to attend to as well), so we are very selective with what we choose to do outside of the home.

 

We have developed a number of little things that help us plan, because it's not worth the time and gas to run 10 miles each way to the library to return a few books. So I have my google calendar set to email me to remind me to check on books that may be due once a week. My husband (who drives through a reasonably-sized town on his commute) calls me on his way home to ask if there's anything he needs to pick up at the store/library/WalMart, but I also do keep a freezer stocked with meats, veggies, etc., so if there's a reason we can't get out, at least we won't starve. I keep a mental list of errands that need to be done, so that we can hit several stops in one trip. It does make for a very long day sometimes, and we're just used to loading spare clothes/diapers for the babies, schoolwork, drinks, snacks/lunch, etc., etc. into the van for the out days. We try to plan some fun stuff in the middle of errands too, like small treats or stopping at the library or park, so that it's gentler on everyone's spirits.

 

This may not apply to you, OP, but we had to realize that commuting costs (both money and time) factor heavily into life; 90 miles round-trip just takes a long time and gets expensive, no matter what. That does tend to grate on all of us a bit sometimes.

 

But living in the country is great! It's quiet and peaceful, and we could have a garden and chickens (and hope to do so at some point). Even with the hassles, I do feel like our quality of life is pretty good here. :)

[Ottakee]

He is looking at 4 houses and they are all in small towns. Three are in towns with services. So, it will be a town. But, nothing like we are used to. The closet city will be Billings, MT. I am really pushing for a particular town which coincidently my dh father reccommeded without me knowing it. It won't be farm living.

 

OK then some of our suggestions won't really help---as to keeping animals, etc.

 

17dd and I are driving with a friend to Montana next week. I know we will be flying home out of Bozeman but don't know the name of the town we will be staying in (or closest town to where we are staying).

[Chris in VA]

Yeah I think we will definitely get warmer layers, a freezer, a generator :). I am trying to steer him towards the town with the Azure stop. We lived in Alaska when I was a child and I thought it was my fun. It was a real pain for my mom to run to the store.

 

What's an azure stop?

[Mango]

mn

[Soror]

We are somewhat rural, we live 15-20 ish minutes outside the nearest town, the county itself has 40k population. We don't have anything you listed either but in town there is a Wal-Mart, Aldi's and various other stores. We don't generally have power outage issues here, I would guess that depends more on your weather. We do however have a generator and some supplies. We are working on self-sufficiency but that is a somewhat separate issue as many around here don't.

 

I would definitely agree with play clothes! My kids look like ragamuffins at home. They have a drawer of play clothes which I don't care what happens. There are lots of opportunities to learn about nature and such. Lots of opportunities for us all to work hard as well and play hard too. It does help to know your neighbors and for them to know you as it is nice for someone to keep an eye out if your gone or such. We don't have any food delivery here either but I grew up more rural than this so I am used to it. I do like to keep some easy food on hand just in case a bad day or freak electrical outage.

 

Speaking of an Azure stop we just got one a little over a year ago and it is a very nice bonus. Although the stores in town are carrying a better selection there is still much that they carry that I cannot buy locally.

[J-rap]

We live in a small town on the prairie, 2.5 hours away from any mall, Target, family, YMCA. Winters can be long, and can keep us from traveling anywhere.

 

We came here from a big city thinking we'd live here only 2 years, max. We've been here for 19 years.

 

There are things that I miss, and I often wish we were only an hour away from a big city, not 2.5. But all in all, I feel that this is one of the best things we ever did for our family. There's really something special about growing up in a small town, getting to know everyone, knowing that everywhere your children go they are known, their being able to walk everywhere in town if they need to.

 

Sure, you won't have the restaurant choices or the extra curricular activity choices or so many other things, but growing up in a peaceful, supportive small-town setting tops all of that for us. I wouldn't trade my kids' growing up years here for anything.

 

Note that it does take awhile to assimilate into a small town. They can seem like a somewhat closed group at first, but over time, you will (hopefully!) be accepted. Get involved where you can, whether it's a church, 4H, etc.

 

One thing we found is that small town public schools (at least around here) are often more open to allowing homeschoolers to take part in a class or two, or sports teams, etc -- if that's something you're interested in.

 

We order a lot of things -- including almost all of our Christmas shopping -- by mail. (Yay Amazon Prime!)

 

Oh one more thing: Small towns can be a great place for your children to gain confidence. If they had an interest or hobby or talent in a big city there are a thousand others who do too. In a small town, they can stand out for those things and be noticed, and most likely there will be a lot of other people encouraging them and supporting them and making them feel pretty special, in a good way.

 

Anyway, just kind of rambling with some thoughts. :)

[lllll]

..

[Oakblossoms]

Azure Standard is a co-op where you can buy and they deliver via a semi truck.

 

 

[Liz CA]

What's an azure stop?

 

 

 

I have a hunch it's along the route for the Azure Co-op for organic food delivery. That would be a plus in my book too, especially if there are not many other grocery stores around.

[Ecclecticmum]

The birds you mention--bet they're guineas. They eat ticks, make lots of noise and HATE snakes!

 

 

Yeah, that sounds about right. They're super useful, but a pain to house & "train", so we're lucky our neighbours used to live here (it was their sisters house before we purchased it, so they lived here whilst building next door) since the birds were originally caged on this property before they moved next door, they still think this is part of their property, and regularly flap over the easement and into our front acreage. Not the smartest birds (he's lost a number of them when they just go and be super stupid), but ultimately very useful.

 

Its a bugger in the Summertime, we can't really allow the kids to play much in the yard then, 'cause the snakes are out in force (my son doesn't understand enough to be on the lookout properly and to watch where he's walking. In Summer, the kids are relegated to the verandah, and weekend trips to the parks etc. It's something in hindsight that I may of gotten a house in town instead.

 

*Please excuse the rotten grammar, spelling & vocabulary, I just woke up and caffeine has not hit my bloodstream yet.

[WishboneDawn]

Here is my collective wisdom accumulated by years of country living. :)

 

1. You need chickens because if you forget other vitally important things at the store which is an hour or so away, at least you will have good, healthy protein all the time!

 

2. Shop in bulk and get a freezer if you don't have one. Freeze and can like a madwoman. :) Enlist children's help and write it down as home economics...

 

3. Get a generator of good quality and capacity. When the power is gone because heavy snow lies on the lines and you cannot get out the driveway, you will be able to operate the coffeemaker with the help of a generator and nothing else will really matter...well, a gravity fed water storage tank is nice too so you won't run out of water right away assuming you will be on a well in the country.

 

4. Have a nice assortment of games and books on hand. You will need tea and the makings of scrumptious desserts (ingredient list up to you) because winter evenings in the middle of nowhere call for sweets!

 

5. Make sure your cell phones work in a remote area.

 

6. Grow your own food. Every child picks a veggie for which he/she is responsible and has to cultivate an area in the garden and make sure it gets watered, cared for and harvested properly. This could be Botany Lab on your transcripts. :)

 

7. If you do not know yet how to bake bread, learn it now! It is easy, rewarding and together with the delicious eggs from your chickens, you will always have food, no matter what.

 

8. Make sure UPS delivers "out there". If not, plan for a drop off address with a friend or relative who lives within the confines of civilization.

 

9. Make friends with any neighbors - even if they are miles away. One day, you will need someone for something and you will be glad to be able to call a friend instead of a stranger.

 

:laugh: PS: You will also need a large dog. I favor the mastiff variety. They protect their family with their lives and love kids but there are a lot of other very lovable breeds as well.

 

BUT YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO THAT ALL AT ONCE!!! :D

 

MY husband and I were raised in the country but only moved back to it with our family 4 years ago. We've almost got the above list covered in that time. The garden is the only thing lacking.

 

I'd add, plant fruit trees and bushes right away. Find your kids some internet forums where they can talk about their interests.

 

And take 9 to heart. You need your neighbours.

[elegantlion]

I live in a small town, 10k people, but grew up in suburbia. It's been a change because I'm used to being able to do stuff. We have Walmart as the major retailer. It's quaint, I can see the town square (including the library) from my front porch, the 3 yearly parades queue up on my street, and people actually get out and walk.

 

When we moved here dh worked in another town 30 minutes away and we homeschooled. We missed a lot of the social stuff happenings because they were through the school or talked about in town. So, I'd recommend checking out the town website, the chamber of commerce, visiting local businesses, and talking to your neighbors. We try to stay local for most things. Also get the paper so you know what's happening around town.

 

When ds was little and we'd move we'd go visit the fire station so he could tour it. Firemen are really helpful about making sure kids are comfortable with them.

 

Where we used to live was suburbia, but no one was ever out. It felt really isolated. Here, I see people out all the time, I chat with the neighbors, and it's safe and quiet. I notice a huge difference in my tolerance for traffic when we travel to the nearby bigger cities. I do miss having shopping options. If I didn't have the Internet it would be worse. I love my house, we got a great deal on it, much cheaper than anything closer to the big town.

[elegantlion]

spam reported

[Random]

The only thing I'd add is to check on your internet options. That is a huge deal in my area! Here, you either have dial-up or pay $100 per month for WildBlue or HughesNet (crummy, slow service with low data caps).

 

And, definitely go with the Azure stop town. Azure has been a huge help in my life. I <3 Azure Standard.